The Senate’s annual defense policy bill passed Monday evening included an amendment calling for a second Navy littoral combat ship, according to the office of Sen. Luther Strange, R-Ala., who sponsored the legislation.
The added $600 million puts the Senate’s National Defense Authorization Act in sync with the Trump administration’s request for two LCS hulls in 2018. But it still falls short of the three ships being proposed by the House in its version of the NDAA.
“Alabama’s men and women in uniform, and the researchers and manufacturers who support them, are truly the pride of our state,” Strange said in a statement. “With today’s vote, I ensured that Alabamians will continue to play a pivotal role in keeping the United States safe and secure.”
Now, the Senate and House will convene a conference committee to negotiate a final version of the must-pass defense bill and a final number of the ships for the Navy.
The Senate Armed Services had proposed the lowest number of the ships and its chairman, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has been a top critic of the LCS, which has had a rocky development and is slated to be replaced by a newly designed Navy frigate.
The Trump Pentagon had originally requested just one LCS but quickly amended that and submitted a revised request to Congress for two after the White House intervened.
Austal USA, located in Strange’s home district, makes one of the two variants of the LCS.
